Death on the Battlefield
by Millennion
Summary: Taking advantage of the shift in power caused by the death of the yondaime,Madara sets his plans in motion. With the akatsuki at his side he has taken over the elemental nations. only one hope remains. five assasins known only as death on the battlefield
1. The day the world stood still

Chapter One: _The Day The Earth Stood Still_

The death of the Fourth Hokage was a tragic event, not only for the Leaf Village, although they felt it the hardest, but for the entire world. It was tragic, not because of the death of a great man, or the sealing of the Kyuubi in a child, but for the events it set forth.

-October 10th, Konoha-

The trees themselves seemed to shiver as the aura of the Kyuubi washed over the land. The Nine Tailed Fox's roar was loud as he swiped two of his enormous tails through another group of ninja. The sky seemed to darken in the beast's anger, as hundreds of Konoha Shinobi sent volleys of kunai hurling at the beast. The great fox seemed not feel the attack, but he roared louder, the power of his roar slamming an attacking group of ninja into the trees, the force of their impact snapping the trees in two.

Standing in one such tree, Minato Namikaze watched solemnly as wave after wave of his men were slaughtered. He jumped from the tree and attacked the beast, Rasengan spinning in his hand. Seeing their Hokage's famous attack, the remaining ninja began launching various Katon jutsu at the fox, hoping to distract him.

The ruse worked. Somewhat. A red chakra cloak surrounded the fox, absorbing the attack, causing the various jutsu to fizzle out harmlessly. The fox's aura exploded, and wave of pure chakra hit the attacking Shinobi. Minato was forced to dodge using Hiraishin, making a shaky landing in a nearby tree. He winced when his men's screams escalated, as they were burned alive with pure chakra.

A gray haired Shinobi landed next to him. "We're being slaughtered, Minato-Sensei," he said. "We should pull back."

"I know, Kakashi," said Minato, "but we have to hold on 'til Sarutobi arrives." Kakashi nodded.

Minato pulled out several Hiraishin kunai, smiled grimly at kakashi, and together they leapt back into the fray.

Several miles away, speeding quickly through the trees, a platoon of Anbu headed towards the battle site, several of the men trembling in fear as the screams of their comrades echoed in the dense forest. They were led by Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage, who carried something peculiar to a battlefield - a child.

The group paused at the edge of the battleground, trembling in shock and fear at the wave of killing intent that washed over them. They watched as their few remaining comrades uselessly launched various jutsu at the enormous fox only to be slaughtered. The air was filled with yellow flashes as the Yondaime attacked, another rasengan in his hand only to be rebuffed. They watched in stunned silence as four of the beasts' tails launched towards him, only to see another flash of yellow as the yondaime dodged the blow.

The exausted hokage reappeared next to them, his breath coming in pants. "Do you have him?" he asked Sarutobi.

Sarutobi nodded, handing him the child. "Minato, are you sure you want to do this?"

"There is no choice, Sensei. This monster must be stopped." Sarutobi nodded in solemn acceptance, and watched as his successor made his way calmly towards his death.

Minato gazed at the child in his arms with sorrow. "I'm sorry, my son," he whispered. Biting his thumb, he swiped his hand over his summoning tattoo. A huge toad appeared in a poof of smoke. Gamabunta glanced around. Spotting the Kyuubi, he sighed, and smoked harder on his pipe. "You don't pick your enemies lightly, do you Minato?" he asked the Shinobi on his head. "I'm sorry, Bunta, but the fox must be stopped."

"How?" asked the toad. "Not even I can stand against the fox for long. His power, it's unreal."

"I have a plan. I just need you to stall the fox while I finish my jutsu."

Gamabunta nodded and jumped to the side, dodging a blast of chakra sent by the fox, jumping in the air the giant toad launched several water bullets at the fox,watching silently as the demon's tails batted the deadly spheres of water away.

Placing his son on his back, Minato began forming seals at supersonic speeds, barely noticing that Gambunta had drawn his giant tanto and charged at the fox, only to be sent reeling by a torrent of chakra. "_Finished_," he silently exclaimed. A dark shadow, visible only to the combatants, appeared behind the yondaime.

"Why have you summoned me?" the shadow whispered.

"Shinigami-sama, I beg you, please help me destroy the Kyuubi."

"The nine tailed fox is extremely powerful. Not even I can fully contain a soul such as his." Minato let out the breath he was holding. '_I was afraid of that,'_ he thought, '_no choice, then_.' "Then I ask that you seal him inside of my son."

"I can do that, but in return for this service, I will devour your soul." Minato nodded.

There was a flash of light, and the Kyuubi roared anger as chains wrapped around his body. The surprised fox fought back valiantly, his tails batting at the chains. the foxes aura increased, and a large sphere of chakra surrounded his body. the sphere seemed to hold the chains at bay for a moment, before it collapsed . The Shinigami pulled hard, and a huge ball of chakra, the Kyuubi's soul, appeared in his hand. The soul began fighting back, seeking to return to it's body. The Shinigami struggled for a moment, then hastily slammed the soul into the child in the Yondaime's arms. The newborn's body shook for a moment. A bright aura flashed around him before fading

Minato handed his child to Gamabunta. "Good-bye, Naruto," he whispered. he smiled at the child one more time, before waiting patiently as the shinigami moved to consume his soul. There was a small flash of light and the young hokage was dead. Gamabunta placed Minato's body on the ground. "_Good-bye, my friend_," he thought. As the surviving konoha ninja gathered around their leader's body, Gamabunta handed the baby to Sarutobi and disappeared. "_This has been a dark day for Konoha_," thought Sarutobi, as he surveyed the battlefield. The bodies of hundreds of konoha shinobi were littered around the forest, most in unrecognizable pieces. Glancing sadly at the child in his arms, sarutobi motioned to the survivors. Carrying the fallen body of their hero, the exhausted ninja headed for home.

-One month later- The hidden mist village-

"Mizukage-sama, I have urgent news," exclaimed a mist jounin, as he bounded into the Mizukage's office.

"What is it, Tetsuya?" asked the Mizukage, as he looked up wearily from the large stack of paperwork that littered his desk. "Konoha came under attack by the Kyuubi. It appears that in the resulting battle, the Yondaime Hokage was killed."

'_This is news_,' thought the Mizukage. "What happened to the Kyuubi?" he asked. Tetsuya faltered for a minute, then replied. "It hasn't been confirmed yet, but it appears that the Yondaime died sealing the Kyuubi into a newborn child." '_So, he's created a Jinchuriki_,' thought the Mizukage. Out loud, He said, "Well done, Tetsuya." The jounin nodded and left.

The Mizukage's smiling facade faded. His one eye twitched in rage and turned a vibrant red. The pupil split into three tomoes. '_So, the Kyuubi failed_,' he thought angrily. '_Now my plans will have to be pushed back_.' Then another thought hit him. '_Perhaps not. The Yondaime Hokage was an extremely powerful Shinobi, perhaps strong enough to rival myself. Now that he's dead, the leaf village has become much weaker, not to mention all the Shinobi they must have lost battling the Kyuubi.' 'A new plan then,'_ he decided. He grinned. "_Astral projection jutsu."_

In a cave located deep in the Land of Rain , two figures, a woman with bright blue hair and a man with spiky red hair, stood waiting. Finally, after several minutes, a shadowy projection of a man appeared. "Pein," said the projection. "Assemble the Akatsuki." "Yes, Madara-sama," said the man.

The projection disappeared. "What do you think he wants?" asked the woman. "I don't know, Konan," said Pein. "We'll soon see." Pein lifted his hand and sent a surge of chakra into the ring on his left hand. He waited a moment, then the silhouettes of eight figures appeared in the room.

"What does Leader-Sama require?" asked the silhouette of a large man holding a huge sword.

"Wait, Kisame, he will be here soon," said Pein. Before anyone could speak, the silhouette of a tall, masked man appeared. "Leader-Sama, why are we here?" asked the shortest silhouette, this one a boy around twelve years of age. "It is too soon to begin the extraction of the tailed beasts."

"You're right, Itachi," said leader, "however, that plan is no longer necessary." The rest of the group looked shocked at that announcement.

"The time is right for us to take over the elemental countries ourselves. we don't need the power of the Biju" Seeing the look of shock on the rest of the members faces, he continued. "Iwa and Suna are still weak from their war with Konoha. Konoha, itself, has been severely weakened from the Kyuubi attack. They lost the yondaime hokage, as well as hundreds of their Shinobi." Here, Itachi interjected. "Weakened though they may be, they still pose a significant threat. The power of their bloodline clans, the Hyuuga, and the Uchiha give them strength."

"I was getting to that. You see, Kumo is gearing up for war. They've had their eyes fixed on the Byakugan for years, and now that the Yellow Flash isn't here to stop them, they're planning on attacking Konoha."

"They'll lose," said another silhouette, this one of a man with pale features and slitted yellow eyes.

"Yes, Orochimaru, they will. And in the process, they will weaken the leaf village even further." The masked man turned to Pein. "Pein, how goes your take over of Amegakure?"

"It goes well. My forces have taken over half the country, however, Hanzo is proving to be troublesome."

The rest of the group twitched at the name. Hanzo the Salamander was not a man to be underestimated.

Leader turned towards the rest of the group. "Sasori, Deidara, and Kisame, will assist in your takeover. You are to crush Hanzo and begin readying Ame for war." Pein looked surprised, but nodded. "Orochimaru, you are to continue building up your sound village." Orochimaru was surprised at the man's knowledge of his secret village, but wisely didn't show it. "Yes, Leader-Sama." "Zetsu will continue his spying, while Itachi will maintain his cover in Konoha." The aforementioned Shinobi nodded. "Hidan, and Kakuzu will continue collecting funds for our conquest."

"What about Kirikagure?" asked Kisame.

"I'll handle that. I have influence in that village," said Leader. "When the leaf/ cloud war has reached it's climax. That is when we will strike." With those words, the masked silhouette disappeared. The rest of the group looked at each other, then vanished as well.

-Three years later-

It was three years later that Madara's plan went into motion. The leaf and cloud village had just reached the terms of a cease-fire when tragedy struck. Ame, along with the newly revealed sound village, attacked Iwa. Iwa, still weak from it's war with Konoha, surrendered when the Tsuchicikage was killed by two Shinobi wearing cloaks with red clouds on them. Next to fall was Kusa, who was attacked by Kiri. Three months later, Kumo surrendered to the combined assault of Ame and Kiri. The Raikage was killed by a man wearing a cloak with red clouds. The leader of this new federation was revealed. His name, Uchiha Madara.

"Hanzo-Sama, I have the report you asked for." Hanzo accepted the report with a grimace. "Thanks, Shinta. You should go." the man nodded. "It's been a pleasure to serve you, Hanzo-Sama." he said before disappearing. Hanzo nodded. He would have revenge, he thought. "_That foolish usurper, Pein, thought he killed me, but I will have the last laugh_," thought Hanzo, as he turned to the report. There was a list of names. Hanzo smirked. Looks like he was headed to water country.

As Hanzo silently snuck into the mist village, he thought back to the report.

_Kimimaro Kaguya, age 7, rumored to have powers never seen before in the Kaguya clan. Kimimaro is considered to be extremely dangerous, even by his own clan. They are so afraid of his burgeoning abilities that the clan has locked him in a cage. never letting him out unless he is needed for battle_. "_He'll be perfect_," thought Hanzo.

He crept silently, until he reached the clan headquarters of the Kaguya clan, located on the very outskirts of the village. Attached to a tree, directly in front of the clan house, was a cage. Inside the cage, sat a young boy, with brilliant silver hair. "Are you Kimimaro?" he asked. The boy nodded. Hanzo twitched his hand and an invisible blade of chakra sliced the cage apart. Kimimaro landed on his feet. "Come with me," said Hanzo, "and I will make you strong."

Kimimaro stared into his eyes, then looked towards the Kaguya compound. Hanzo saw the look and nodded. "I understand. Wait here," he said. Hanzo walked calmly into the compound. There were screams, and five minutes later he walked out. "Let's go."

-Two days later- snow country-

Hanzo and Kimimaro walked slowly on the bridge leading into town. "Who are we looking for Hanzo-Sama?" asked Kimimaro. "I don't have a name," he replied. "The report I received simply said that there is a young girl around here who has an unusual ability. Apparently, several of the locals have been killed with large spears of ice, sent by a young peasant girl.

Kimimaro nodded, and made his way down the bridge. He was near the end of the bridge when he sensed it. A pair of eyes looking at him. Turning, he saw a scruffy girl sitting in the corner of the bridge. He met her eyes, and frowned. "Your eyes are like mine," whispered the girl, smiling at him. Kimimaro stared for a moment, then turned. "Come with me," he said, before making his back to Hanzo who stood watching them. "What is your name?" he asked, without turning around. The girl smiled. "My name is Haku." Hanzo glanced down at the girl, and without a word, the three walked away.

-On the outskirts of the Kumo-

Hanzo had Haku and Kimmimaro wait in a nearby town while he infiltrated the village.

Sneaking past the guards, he henged into a non-descriptive looking man and made his way to the market place. He walked to a nearby vendor, where homely woman sold fish. "Where does the demon live?" he asked. The woman's eyes filled with hatred. "That little bitch usually sleeps in the alley." Hanzo nodded, and headed towards the nearby alley. As soon as he entered, he noticed a young, blond girl slink behind a trash can. "I'm not here to hurt you," he said. "I've come to take you away from this place." The girl smiled softly. "My name is Yugito." Hanzo smiled, grabbed her hand, and with a snap, they were gone.

-On the border of fire country-

Again, Hanzo left his charges at a nearby town as he made his way into the leaf village, being careful to completely mask his chakra. He was making his way towards the marketplace, intending to do the same thing he had done with Yugito, However, before he could change, he saw a small mob chasing a young blond boy. Acting quickly, he grabbed the boy as he ran past, and sunshined away. The boy started to scream, but Hanzo kept his hand over his mouth. "Don't worry, Naruto," he whispered to the boy. I'm here to rescue you from this village." Before Naruto could say anything, Hanzo knocked him out with a light chop to the back of the neck. '_I've got to move quickly,'_ he thought, as he made his way towards his last, perhaps most dangerous target . The details listed in the report were disturbing.

_Yakumo Kurama, age 5, heir to the Kurama clan. Her powers are so strong that she has the ability to make genjutsu take on actual physical form. This was proven when a manifestation of her imagination set her family home on fire, Killing her parents and several other members of her clan. She currently lives with her uncle. He and the rest of her clan are terrified of her_. Hanzo quickly made his way to the Kurama clan's compound. Shifting naruto to his other shoulder, he entered the main building silently. looking around quickly he began searching for his target. the house was abandoned, not a soul in sight. _'They really are scared of her'_ he thought. He eventually found the girl in her room painting.

"Are you afraid of me?" asked the girl without turning from her painting .

Hanzo was surprised she had sensed him, but shook his head "No."

"Everyone else is, including my uncle." "I've come to take you away from here. I can give you a real family, one that is not afraid of you." She finally looked at him and stared at the unconscious blond in his arms. Seeing her look, he smiled. "This is Naruto. He will be a member of your new family." The girl finally nodded. Grabbing her hand, the trio vanished.

-One week later-

Hiruzen Sarutobi read the report in front of him for the fifth time. Every time he read it, it seemed to get worse. First, Naruto and the Kurama heir come up missing, presumably kidnaped. Then, the mysterious alliance issued an ultimatum: the leaf village must surrender or be burned to the ground. Sarutobi dearly wanted to fight back, to show the will of fire Konoha was so famous for.

Unfortunately, reality set in. The leaf village was far too weak to fight any war, let alone one against the entire world. It seemed he had no choice but to surrender. '_But_,' he thought, 'I_ won't give in without some measure of resistance_.' "Jiraiya, is everyone assembled?"

The toad sage nodded. A small group of Shinobi entered his office: Maito Gai, two young chunins, Yuhi Kurenai and Anko Mitarashi, his son Asuma, Nara Shikaku, Chouza Akimichi, Inochi Yamanaka, Hiashi Hyuuga and Inuzuka Tsume, along Shibi Abrurame.

"I have gathered you here for one reason. The leaf village is about to fall." No one uttered a sound. "You are the heads of the great clans of this village. you are also the only clans I feel I can trust with a great responsibility." Sarutobi surveyed the ninja surrounding him, " I have one final request." "Gai, Anko, Kurenai, Asuma. This is your final mission. Go with Jiraiya to find Tsunade. She is the last of the Senju clan, and if our enemy is truly Uchiha Madara, then her life is in great danger. Protect her. I leave it up to you fine shinobi to form a resistance against this evil that has poisoned our world. I have chosen you for this mission, because your lives are great danger if you remain in this village. Accompanying you will be three of my most trusted anbu: Gekkou Hayate, Yugao uzuki, and Tenzou."

"It will be as you desire, Hokage-Sama," said Gai, "however, I have one request. I would like to bring my adopted son, Rock Lee, and his best friend, Tenten with me."

"Your request is granted, Gai."

Hiashi spoke next. "I am the head of my clan, so I must stay here. It would draw too much attention if entire clans started leaving the village, however, I have a request." " I would like to send my daughters as well as my nephew, and brother, with Jiraiya. I don't know what the future will hold for this village, but it is certain we are end for some dark times." Hiashi paused " I would like the hyuuga clan to participate in this ressistance, whenever it happens. my children and nephew will be the future of the Hyuuga clan. My brother will make sure it is an Hyuuga clan I can be proud of."

The rest of the clan heads glance at each other. finally Shikaku spoke" we will send our children along as well." Sarutobi looked up surprised." Our clans have long been the foundation of this village and we would like them to be the foundation of the resistance that will one day save it." Shikaku surveyed his fellow clan heads seeing the agreement in their eyes. " I only wish we could go with them." "The Sandaime looked at the group, tears in his eyes. "Leave immediately. May the will of fire guide you." Everyone vanished. Sarutobi signaled the anbu hiding in the shadows. "Tenzou, tell the council my decision to surrender to the Alliance , then leave with them." Tenzou vanished. '_You may have won this battle,_ _Madara,'_ he thought, "_but the will of fire lives on."_

A.N. that was a rush. sorry if it was a little boring, the next chapter will be full of excitement. To clear up any confusion. Some of the characters are older than they are in canon, some of the ages at this point.

kimimaro-7

Haku- 7

yugito-6

yakumo-5

Naruto-4

Itachi is twelve.

facts

contrary to canon

the rest of the akatsuki members don't know who Madara is, they just recognize him as Leader, Pein is recognized as second in command.

Hizashi is alive and is going with jiraiya

Remember, Konohamaru doesn't exist yet.

I know that the children left with Hanzo rather easily, but think about it, he offered them what they wanted, plus children are easy to manipulate. He knocked Naruto out to keep him quiet. He snuck into the villages so easily because one he's Hanzo, he's that good, and two, everyone had much bigger things to focus on. If you don't know who Hanzo is, he's one of only two ss class ninja. Him and Minato.. He defeated all three sannin at the same time..

. The people who left with jiraiya are, anko,kurenai,asuma,shino,ino,chouji,shikamaru,hanabi,hinata,gai,lee,tenten,kiba,hana,neji, tenzou, hayate, and yugao and hizashi. The parents couldn't leave but they left their family scrolls with jiraiya.. Sasuke and kakashi aren't leaving because one sarutobi doesn't trust the uchiha clan. As for kakashi you'll find out later.


	2. The way of the shinobi

Whew its been a long time, but without further ado, chapter two.

Chapter 2 The Way of the Shinobi

-somewhere in the mountains of earth country-

Naruto looked wearily forward at the long row of steps that lead up to his new home.

It had been two weeks since he had met the strange man who had promised him a family. he had awoken from his forced sleep terrified, his blue eyes flitting nervously around the room, finally falling on the tall man who had essentially kidnapped him; before he could utter a word however the man merely pointed towards the corner. "Your new family." he said before turning back to the large scroll he was reading. Naruto glanced at the aforementioned corner in anticipation, eager to meet his new family. he saw three girls huddled together , whispering. Sitting a few feet away from them was a boy barely older than him with silver hair. Smiling the energetic boy walked over to him. "my name is Naruto Uzumaki." exclaimed the blonde boy loudly. The three girls giggled at the silvered haired boys startled expression.

"I'm Kimmimaro Kaguya." Said the quiet boy. Naruto grinned and turned to the three girls. "I'm Haku" said the tallest of the three girls. "I'm Yugito ." Said his fellow blonde, the last girl, smiled at him hesitantly " my name is Yakumo." Naruto grinned and was about to respond when a deep voice said " and I'm Hanzo, " Naruto turned around quickly to see the man who had brought him here. " you can call me master , and soon, sensei." Naruto gulped and nodded. The man was tall and blonde, his face was gaunt and strong, and would perhaps be considered handsome if it wasn't for the long scar that adorned the left side of his face. But it was his aura, one of power that had the hyperactive blonde gulping. "W..Why have you brought us here" said Naruto. The other children looked on, interested in the answer. Hanzo laughed." Forward are we. " He grew serious " You are here because I may have found a use for you." Naruto glanced at the other children and did something mysterious for one in his situation. He smiled.

The children stayed only one night in that room which turned out to be part of a safe house belonging to one of Hanzo's spies. The next morning Hanzo set a grueling pace towards earth country followed closely by the children .

Naruto's tired body whimpered as he sat down on a log at the entrance to the steps. He glanced over to see the rest of the children doing the same. Hanzo had used a ninjutsu and gone ahead stating that the stairs were a test of their determination. The stairs seemed to go up forever as it lead to the top of the mountain. At the top of the stairs, barely visible even to naruto's enhanced vision was the courtyard of an old temple. Narutos vision lowered eyeing the thousands of steps. Oh how he wished he was a ninja like hanzo.

*flashback*

The small group were slowly making their way past the outskirts of grass country when it happened.

They had stopped to rest near a small glade. Hanzo was bent over creating a fire, when a whirling shuriken impacted his skull. The children looked in awe as their new master seemed to gurgle before exploding in a spurt of water. Behind them were three figures wearing forehead protectors with musical notes. Naruto turned a cry on his lips, when he saw hanzo appear behind the unsuspecting ninja. Before the three sound ninja's could attempt an attack, a blue blade arced through the air and sliced the unfortunate ninjas in half. Naruto watched in surprise as the man before him disappeared in a burst of smoke. Turning back towards his equally shocked companions, he was surprised to see hanzo calmly sitting on a stump, eyeing the children with amusement. Only one thought passed through the young blondes mind, 'cool'

*end flashback*

Naruto stood up determination in his eyes. Turning to his companions he grinned" come on everyone, let us show sensei what we're made of." Without waiting for a response the four year old begin climbing the stairs.

Kimmaro looked at the brave blonde who ran up the stairs like a man possessed. Never had he seen someone so determined . Smiling for perhaps the first time in years he ran after him.

Haku felt her heart twitch as she watched Naruto. growing up in Kiri, she had never been exposed to cheerfulness. Even before she had killed her father and began wandering the streets, there had always been an air of despair around her. This boy was unlike anyone she had ever met, his eyes were similar to hers, pain and longing filled them just as much as hers. And yet , despite all this the boy was always smiling and upbeat, and determined, so determined. Over the two week trek to make it here, she had noticed that he never gave up or allowed himself to fall behind, despite being the youngest of the children. When Yakumo had begun to fall behind at the beginning of the trek ,her body unused to physical work, it was the youngest blonde who held her hand and helped her forward. Haku watched with awe , and glancing at the other girls, moved to follow the younger boy.

Yakumo, watched with the same interest as Haku, being the youngest girl she naturally looked to the other two for guidance, a small blush brightened her cheeks as she remember how the blonde had grabbed her hand and helped her follow the others. Seeing Haku follow him, she too moved forward.

Yugito looked on with surprise as she watched the other children begin to climb the stairs. She too had been watching the youngest blonde, and had also begun to admire his determination. She watched the other children move forward and steeled herself, there was no way she was going to be left behind.

The path up the mountain was long and slow, but the children keep going moving ever forward with the hope of a brighter future . leading the way was naruto, the blondes determination unwavering despite the hours of climbing. Seeing the top of the stairs , he ran forward ignoring the protests of his young body, followed closely by the other children. As the reached the top of the stairs the children found themselves in a large courtyard of what appeared to be a mansion. . A loud clapping drew their attention and the looked up to see hanzo sitting at the top of the main gate. "well Done." He said before flipping and landing on the ground in front of the exhausted kids. Surveying his prospective tools, he smiled" you have all proved that you have the determination to be of great use to me. " motioning the children to sit he continued' the world as you know has changed, the era of the 5 great villages has fallen, the world is now ruled by the alliance. All of your former homes are now under its control." Naruto snorted, none of them cared for their former homes. Hanzo continued." You five were handpicked by me to help me with my grand ambition"" What is that, hanzo-sama?" asked Naruto.

Hanzo clenched his fist in anger" the complete and utter annihilation of the alliance ,and most importantly its second in command Pain." " You five will be my tools to achieve this, starting today you will be trained in the way of the shinobi. " before any of the children could react, Hanzou flexed his aura while directing a massive amount of killing intent at them. The weight of his power combined with his KI brought the children to their knees, the pressure of his power beginning to suffocate them. After a minute the weight lifted. " W..Why?" gasped Naruto as he moved to help Yugito who had thrown up from the fear. " Before your training can begin you needed two things, first a demonstration of what true power is , and two the most important element to any shinobi's growth.. fear. Fear drives men to become stronger. In your service to me you will meet men stronger than I . Only by having a glimpse of power , the heights you must reach, can you attain what you must." Hanzo paused" tell me Naruto, do you want to get stronger, to have power, to never be bullied or threatened again, to never feel helpless again." Naruto nodded, his companions following suit." Then train hard, young Uzumaki" Hanzou turned and lead them to a clearing

located behind the mansion.

"There are 15 disciplines of the shinobi" stated the man" the average shinobi learns only a few , of them, great shinobi master over half. You will master them all, the disciplines are

The art of spiritual refinement or meditation, the true shinobi is always calm and collected, always is his mind clear. Meditation will help you control your thoughts and clear your mind, allowing your mind to work optimally even in high pressure situations. It will also give you greater chakra control.

The art of chakra control. The shinobi should have complete control of his chakra, being able to hide or express it at will. only with perfect control of your chakra can you truly master jutsu

The art of throwing weapons. A ninja never misses a target

The art of kenjutsu, a blade is a most useful tool of war

The art of espionage, Information is the most important part of any battle, gaining it can win wars.

The art of stealth and concealment- a ninja is never seen unless he wants to be

The art of geography, a ninja should always have the knowledge of all terrains, and be able to fight equally in all of them

The art of disguise, a ninja can be anyone, the the couple on a date, the old man walking his dog.

The art tactics., strategy is the key to victory, even the strongest foe can be killed with the right one.

The art of taijutsu, your body is a key asset , strengthen it and it will not fail you

The art of genjutsu or mind techniques, one of the most powerful arts, they can render a strong man weak, or turn enemy into ally.

The art of ninjutsu,, the powerful techniques are important to a ninja's arsenal

The art of sealing, sealing has many useful effects. An excellent trump card against unwary foes

Elemental mastery. The greatest ninja can evoke the power of the elements. Master them my students

The art of silent killing, you must be able to kill quickly and silently, to wipe out an entire battalion without being seen.

I am a master of most of these disciplines and adept at those I am not. There are three keys to being a great ninja. Speed, Accuracy, and Power."

Hanzo paused and glanced down at the eager looks on his young students faces.

"unfortunately you all are too young to begin training in most of the disciplines. So for this first year I will start your training in meditation, tactics, taijutsu, chakra control, and throwing weapons. You will also undergo exercises to strengthen your body and help you attain the three keys to becoming a great ninja."

Glancing down , he smiled " let's begin.'

-Taijutsu training

He lead them to a dojo.

"Here is where you begin your taijutsu training. I will not teach you forms or styles. it will be up to you to create a style suiting you. Here I will teach you how to fight. How to give and receive a punch, how to fall, how kick. How to maintain your balance. , lets begin."

- chakra control

Chakra control training was done in the woods behind the mountains near a stream.

Hanzo showed each of them how to summon their chakra at will. Then proceeded to show them the concepts of the leaf exercise and tree walking. On his first try Naruto blasted the leaf across the stream, while Haku and Yakumo were able to hold it for a few seconds before it fell. Kimmimaro, held his for a minute before it fell while Yugito set hers on fire. Naruto glanced forlornly as his leaf continued its flight, before grinning and continuing the training

- throwing weapons

Their training in thrown weapons was done in the same clearing where they were first instructed on the 15 shinobi disciplines. Hanzo had set up 5 dummies and made them move with chakra. None of the children were able to land a hit although Haku grazed its cheek.

-Strength and speed training.

"To help you build your strength, every morning you will run up and down the stairs ten times". Hearing the children's groans, Hanzo suppressed a laugh.

After they were done he lead them back to the stream, tying a satchel around their waist he filled it with rocks and made them swim across, stating it would help with speed, strength and endurance training.

After they finished training, hanzo began instructing them on shinobi history, and tactics, as well as making them practice forming handsigns.

Naruto and Kimmiaro were most interested in his defeat of the Sannin in the third great shinobi war, while the girls secretly wished to be as strong as this Tsunade.

After supper they attended their final lesson of the day. Meditation. This was especially difficult for naruto who was unable to sit still. However a glare from hanzo had the squirming blonde in a focusing.

As he fell deeper into meditation, he found himself in a sewer. Following the path he ended up in front of a long gate, with the word seal on it, behind the gate slumbered a large red fox with nine tales. Careful not to wake the fox ., he made his way back down the sewer and into consciousness.

Hanzo. Noted naruto's surprised look and smiled' so he knows'. Turning his back to the children he said" yes its true naruto, you are the container of the nine tailed, fox." Naruto looked on in horror barely listening as memories of the konoha villager's hateful words, and assassination attempts consumed him.

So its true he thought. I am a demon. Choking back tears he listened to hanzou" Yugito here is the container of the Nibi. Kimmimaro is the last survivor of the bloodthirsty Kaguya clan. Haku is the last member of the Hyouton bloodline, while Yakumo is possessed by an manifestation of her own immense power." The children all glanced at each other, horrified at their sensei utterance of their most hated secrets. However as they looked into each other eyes they found not the fear and hatred they had become accustomed to, but acceptance. Slowly they all smiled and each of them silently swore to get as strong as possible to protect their new family. Hanzo grinned, darkly, Soon, he thought.

Whew there you go folks the second chapter. Thanks for all those who have waited for this. Sorry if this chapter was a tad boring but it was necessary. This will be a very in depth story and will feature lots of training and really cool missions, as well as ideas never used by naruto fandom, I cant wait to get started. Next chapter, The will to survive


	3. The will to survive

Chapter 3 The will to survive

In had been one year since the children had begun training with Hanzo. All of them had progressed in leaps and bounds, after 6 months each of the children had mastered the leaf and tree walking exercise. And had begun making progress on water walking. In taijutsu all of them had learned the basics of fighting, so Hanzo had begun having weekly spars, allowing the children to practice their skill in simulated combat .

" Taijutsu" his explained "has four distinct disciplines, Koppojutsu, the art of breaking bones, this style is most commonly used by those with greater physical strength; Koshijutsu, the art of striking pressure points, nerve points and chakra points. This type of combat requires knowledge of the human anatomy, and is frequently used by medic nins. "

He paused," the Gentle fist style of the Hyuga clan is an example of this style." He glanced at the children, noting Haku's interested expression and continued "then there is Taihenjutsu, the adaption skill. The user must have extreme speed and awareness, preferring to react quickly to attacks, and is primarily defensive. This style is often used by long range genjutsu and ninjutsu users such as the Uchiha clan."

He glanced at Yakumo," finally there is Jutaijutsu, the grappling technique, usually used by bigger fighters, this discipline uses the momentum of the opponent against them." He turned and smiled" you will have to pick which discipline suits you best when you begin creating your taijutsu style."

Naruto and Kimmimaro had developed a sort of rivalry , as the hyperactive blonde, and the quiet boy frequently faced each other each other in spars. Currently they were tied 20-20.

In throwing weapons they had progressed to three targets a piece, except for Haku who was up to five. They learned to throw everything from, shuriken, kunai, to throwing knives.

Their strength and speed training increased every month , and after 6 months, Hanzo began teaching them how to incorporate chakra into their movements and how to travel like shinobi.

"Never forget" he said "that using chakra like this only amplifies our natural ability, so to truly have speed or strength you must train your body to be fast and strong, so with chakra you only go faster. Nearly every single aspect of ninja training can be mastered without the use of chakra. Remember this well, and never let chakra be your crutch, as so many do. Become strong without chakra and you will be truly fearsome. "

After 6 months of training Hanzo had deemed them of equal ability to an elite genin. And so began upping their training, in addition to their regular lessons, he began teaching them the fundamentals of silent killing, stealth, and espionage, as well, as survival techniques. techniques., He had them practice these techniques by hunting the wild game that populated the nearby forest , then teaching them how to skin and cook the animals.. Oddly enough it was Naruto who excelled the most at the stealth exercises, his experience hiding from the konoha villager's aiding him. Kimmimaro however was the best at silent killing.

Hanzo also began to incorporate small amounts of ninjutsu and genjutsu training into their routine, teaching them , the three basic ninjutsu, as well as how to detect and dispel genjutu. but this like all other lessons had a staunch warning " Always my students remember this, there is a great difference between knowing a jutsu and mastering it." Turning towards the stream, he formed seals fasters than the children could see. A giant fireball scorched across the stream boiling any water near its trajectory. Before splitting and taking the shape of Hanzo's head.

Turning to his awed students , Hanzo continued" That was a simple great fireball technique..it has 13 handseals, I only need one to use it, as a master of the technique I can control everything about the jutsu from the size, speed , and strength to how hot it is, and the amount of chakra I use is negligible compared to nonmasters."" Remember, always master every jutsu you possess. Only then can you use them to their full potential."

This training continued for another 6 months, until Hanzo judged them to be at the average strength for a genin. " it's time" he said "for a test." He lead them to the courtyard and presented them with a map.

" You five have trained hard this past year. You are thoroughly ground in the basics of the shinobi arts., and through spars have learned to incorporate them in combat. However there is no substitute for experience, it is time you experienced the harshness of ninja life." Turning to the map he pointed" on the outskirts of earth country, a roving band of bandits has been kidnapping and selling women to the outlying yakuza. Their leader is rumored to have a necklace made of solid gold. Your mission is to wipe out the bandits and bring me that necklace."

Naruto glanced at his companions as they made their way through the trees . they were just as nervous as he was he knew, but they wouldn't show it. Over the year that he had know them, they had gone from strangers to family. he considered Kimmimaro as his brother, even as they challenged each other during training, pushing each other to the limit. Kimmimaro was quiet, rarely speaking up unless you spoke to him, but Naruto knew the silver haired boy felt the same as he. His relationship with the girls was not nearly as competitive. Ever since that day a year ago, when he finally found the acceptance he had always desired, he vowed to do whatever necessary to protect his new family.

Giving off a burst of speed he took point, his four companions following swiftly in line.

- Near the bandits camp.-

Nauto stood in front of a large sakura tree, tapping his foot . suddenly four figures landed in the trees next to him." Well?" he asked, surveying his companions.

"there appears to be to be about 50 bandits in the camp, positioned sporadically around the scattered campfires." said Haku pointing towards said fires.

" there are a few sentries positioned at each of the entrances" added Yugito" also the leader is probably near the main fire.  
Naruto processed this. " okay" he said finally" we'll enter separately, taking out the sentries as we go. We'll take out the enemies surrounding the perimeter fires before converging on the main fire.

Kimmimaro and I are the best at taijutsu so, we'll take point. Yugito, Yakumo, you two attack from behind after you see us strike. Haku stay behind as hidden long range support. "Naruto turned towards his companions and smiled" be careful." The four nodded before disappearing.

- With Kimmiaro

Kimmiaro crept silently through the trees, heading for the east entrance. Spotting the two half asleep sentries , he pulled out two throwing knives and launched them, hitting both of them in the throat.

Creeping past them he did not have time to ponder the kill as he moved to implement Naruto's plan. The fact that the youngest member of their little group was the leader , had never surprised him. Naruto had a natural charm and determination , that was so easy to follow. He worked long and hard in training , determined not to fall behind his older companions. He feared nothing, and was always pushing the others to be better. For someone like Kimmimaro, who had been feared as far back as he could remember for possessing a rare bloodline, this was a welcome change. 'He's my brother' he thought as he threw shuriken and killed two more men, before stabbing an unsuspecting third in the back of the next. Moving silently to the last fire, he spotted five men. Two were drunk and swaying, while the other three were laughing. Kimmimaro pulled out a small white ball and tossed it unnoticed on the ground near them. A light smoke seeped from the ball, obscuring the men's vision, before they could shriek in surprise, Kimmiaro had hit the three laughing men with knives. Using their bodies as a spring board he slit the drunken men's throats.' And I will Do anything to protect him' silently he headed for the main fire.

- With Haku

The raven haired girl was perched precariously on top of one of the tents. There was a group of about 5 men who were playing a drinking game of some sort . steeling herself, she jumped in the air, her form hidden by the moonless night. Twirling she launched kunai , hitting all five of the unsuspecting men in the forehead. Landing she turned towards the main fire, hearing the sounds of battle.' I hope Naruto-kun is ok.'

- With Yakumo and Yugito

Yakumo waited behind the main tent with Yugito for the signal to attack.

Her breath was coming in short pants. The two girls had made short work of the guards, and hade met up behind the tent each hoping the boy they had come to admire would be alright. Hearing the distinct sound of blades whirling through the air, as well as the thunk of metal entering flesh and a familiar scream.. The two girls launched their own kunai, before moving to attack.

-With Naruto.

Naruto hurled another kunai, hitting one of the guards in the neck, using the dropping man's body as a spring board he slit the throat of another one. Channeling chakra into his feet he dodged the swipe of a bandit with a sword ,, before jamming a kunai into the man's jawbone.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Kimmimaro take out two guards with twin knives to the groin. Naruto paused a second to survey the battlefield, most of the bandits were dead., Kimmimaro was finishing the last two on the left, and a volley of kunai annihilated the rest of the bandits on the right.

Naruto begin looking around for the boss's corpse when a wave of Killing Intent washed over him. Thinking quickly he stabbed himself in the arm with a kunai, before tackling Kimmimaro, shoving him out of the way of a massive fireball. The two young ninja quickly regained their footing and faced their opponent. A non discript man wearing a gold necklace.

"well done" said the man" masterfully executed, for Genin." The man reached behind him and drew a Ninjato, the silver blade glistening in the night. The man licked the blade and launched forward narrowly missing Kimmimaro who dodged to the side. Naruto launched a brace of kunai which the man battered away with his sword. Focusing chakra into his legs Naruto attempted a rolling kick to the unknown ninja's face, but the man dodged and stabbed him in the arm.

Naruto fell to the ground and screamed. The unknown ninja moved to finish him off dodging an aerial assault from Kimmimaro, only to duck a hail of senbon sent by Haku who joined the battle. Before he could react several kunai, impacted his arm, forcing him to drop the blade.

Yugito , and Yakumo helped Naruto up.

"be careful" gritted out the blonde holding his arm" this guy's at least jounin level".

'whats the strategy?"asked Haku palming a kunai.

Naruto forced a laugh " the plan is to fight like hell" nodding towards Kimmimaro , he launched towards the unknown ninja ducking the volley of throwing knives, Yugito and Haku sent as cover fire. Reaching the man, he began a full on taijutsu assault, only to have the maan dodge with ease. Kimmimaro attacked from the right side, but even their combined assault was no match for the veteran ninja, who danced between their strikes with ease.

Haku watch with horror as the strange ninja battered her friends, no matter what combination they tried the man swatted them away like flies. A small cry escaped her lips as Naruto received a brutal jab to the stomach with a kunai, knocking him unconscious. Seeing the boy she had come to admire covered in blood, awakened something that had been dormant for over a year. And a shell of ice slowly crawled up her hand, forming a blade. She would not allow him to get away with this

-.

Yakumo gritted her teeth when she saw Naruto fall to the ground. There was no way she would allow this stranger to destroy her new family, her hands flew into seals, and a power she had locked away, erupted.

Unknowingly echoing her, companions feelings, Yugito too, reached subconsciously for power.

'**Here you go child' **whispered a feminine voice. A wave of blue chakra shot through her body.

Kimmimaro, felt the bones in his arms slide out , as he watched the closest thing he had to a brother fall to the ground. The bones formed a long, thin blade on each arm.

Focusing chakra into his legs he attacked, catching the unknown ninja by surprise cutting a thin red line in his cheek, before the man could react he found himself in the dark, the shadows around him consuming him.

'Kai' he muttered and was surprised when the illusion did not vanish. Stabbing himself with a kunai, he was freed from the illusion, only to duck as a ball of blue fire shot over his head, courtesy of the blonde girl,. From his stance he flipped, dodging the thrust by the raven haired girl with an ice blade.' What are these children' he thought before leaping out into the fray.

Naruto was surrounded by pain, he could still see, watching with silent anguish as his friends continued to fight the unknown ninja.

'**Pathetic'** boomed a voice' **Surely you can do better'**

Naruto heard the voice and winced.' What's happening to me?' he thought.

The voice seemed amused '**you're dying fool. Your frail human body has lost too much blood'**

'No' Naruto screamed in his mind' I can't die yet, I have to save them'

'**Do you want to live human'** asked the voice' **Do you want the power to strike down this man, and save your friends'**

'Yes' whispered naruto.

The voice laughed **' Then take it human, cling to life and grow stronger, perhaps if you impress me, I'll leave you a gift'**

The fighting halted as a torrent of red chakra swirled from Naruto's fallen body, the unknown ninja felt a trickle of fear at the massive amount of killing intent being directed at him. He watched in horror as the blonde's wounds healed before his very eyes

'**I'm gonna kill you' **screamed the blonde, before launching forward at insane speeds. Before the Ninja could react , the blondes newly formed claws ripped a jagged cut across his belly. Ignoring the pain , he sent a giant fireball hurling towards, the raging blonde. To his surprise the blonde screamed and a wave of invisible chakra shattered the fireball. This surprise cost him as haku launched a senbon at his neck paralyzing him. The man could only watch in silent horror as the blondes claws ripped out his throat silencing him forever. Just as suddenly as it came the naruto's power disappeared, causing the blonde to fall unconscious. The last words he heard was the Voice saying "**Well Done"**

**Well that was a fun chapter with lots of action. And a quick update too, rare for me. Anyway, stay tuned for the next chapter, The Path to power.**

**A.N pet peeve of mine is when authors create a story and spend so much time limiting the main characters power. The way the manga is turning out then if naruto doesn't have at least kakashi level strength before the time skip begins then he will never realistically be able to fight the main baddies one on one. I mean think about it, itachi beat kakashi in about ten seconds, and we know he could have defeated all three sensei's had he defeated an entire village alone, several kage level ninja, many jounin. And naruto manges to match him but can't defeat sasuke wtf. As long as he isn't freakin goku strong at 6 then your probably ok, the villains are strong enough to match him, after all if kakashi and itachi can be jounin at the age naruto graduates then making him strong isn't too much of a stretch.**


	4. InterludeThe God of Shinobi's Stand

Interlude The God of Shinobi's Stand , The will of fire lives on.

Hiruzen sat quietly at his desk, as the last of the clan heads left his office.

staring nostalgically at a picture on his desk, he smiled grimly. 'Its almost time.'

"is it done Itachi?" he asked one of the two shadowy figures that had just appeared in his office.

"yes, Hokage-sama." Said the boy ," I sent word to Killer Bee in Kumo, and Baki, in Suna, They say that they and the rest of their followers will join your resistance. "

"Excellent, and the other matter?." Itachi paused "it will be done tonight ,sir."

Sarutobi seemed to sadden at this " I hate to ask this of you, but their betrayal.."

".. cannot go unpunished." finished the child genius.

"What about your mission, Kakashi,?" asked the Third.

"it is as you suspected, sir, Danzo has been working with Madara all along."

You know what to do, Kakashi, after the kill display the head and join up with Jiraiya."

Kakashi nodded and as he made to leave, Itachi stopped him." I have a favor to ask Kakashi, I would like you to take Sasuke with you." Seeing kakashi's startled face he continued" the Uchiha clan has fallen into disgrace. Only by joining this resistance and saving the world from an Uchiha's tyranny can we regain our honor. Soon Sasuke will be one of the last surviving members of our clan, as such, it is his duty. Take him, and train him in the way of the shinobi, and teach him to master the sharingan. "

Kakashi looked startled "Why can't you teach him yourself" he asked

" I must maintain my cover for as long as possible. I will do my best to divert the alliances attention and give the resistance time to get strong enough." Kakashi smiled "I'll take care of him then."

Itachi looked grateful before disappearing followed closely by Kakashi.

Hiruzen moved towards the window and stared out at the Hokage monument. ' its almost time,' he thought before turning to his closet and taking out a battle worn set of armor. Moving back towards the window he watched as a small motley group made their way out of the east gate. Turning to the monument he smiled "the will of fire lives on in them" he said to his fellow hokages." Watch over them." He whispered before disappearing.

- In the surrounding forest.-

Orochimaru looked amused at the figure standing so brazenly in front of him.

He had entered fire country with fifty of his best men, intent on obtaining konoha's surrender, and gloating at his former master's fall. "You're looking well Sarutobi-sensei" he said mockingly "have you come to surrender your pathetic village, old man."

Hiruzen looked solemn for a moment " no ,my rebellious student, I have come to do something I should have years ago." Forming handsigns faster than even the Sannin could follow, he slammed his palm into the ground, summoning an enormous Monkey. The gray haired Enma, took one look at the opposing ninja and transformed into an huge black staff. Sarutobi twirled the staff expertly into his hands. " I have come to take your head."

In the history of thee shinobi world, few had ever reached the status of Hiruzen Sarutobi. His immense skill in every aspect of the shinobi arts as well as his encyclopedic knowledge of Ninjutsu had earned him the title, The God of Shinobi. He proved that title now, as he battled his way through orochimaru's men.

His staff flashed with deadly accuracy through the skull of yet another of the sound jounin. Flashing through seals he sent an enormous earth dragon that engulfed five unfortunate sound ninja.

That made thirty , he thought as ,he dodged a summoned snake,

"**Fire style- Fire Dragon Missile" **he spat a large torrent of fire that consumed the unfortunate reptile.

Forming a cross seal, he summoned ten kage bunshins ,who immediately began to eliminate the rest of Orochimaru's forces.

Turning to his former student, he smiled sadly." this is the end, disciple."

Orochimaru felt a shrivel of fear, as he watched his former mentor rip through his forces. The man was just like he remembered, his staff lightning quick, his jutsus even faster. but there was still that…

He smirked" you've done well to last this long you old fool,'" sending two enormous snakes after him , the evil man formed seals., Summoning three coffins.

Sarutobi, , who had dealt with snakes, looked on in horror , as the first two coffins opened, revealing his former mentors. The Shodaime, and Nidaime hokages. Moving quickly he sent a huge fire dragon to consume the last coffin.

" Your evil and cowardice, has reached new heights, Orochimaru, to resort to this jutsu " spat a reformed Enma

Before orochimaru could reply, Hiruzen moved. ***Lightning style-thunder balls**" two small ball of lighting shot forward and hit the two former hokages. A torrent of electricity shot through them and they fell forward, grabbing a newly transformed enma he swung his staff at his head, colliding with an hastily drawn Kusanagi" You forget, my foolish student, that I was the one who placed that jutsu on the forbidden scroll. All that is required to disrupt the jutsu is, a powerful lightning technique to before the seals are placed in the body." The two parried each other blade Vs staff, at lightning speeds. Jumping apart they launched a series of elemental jutsu, fire dragons hit earth walls, torrents of water were cut apart by blades of wind. Blocking an incoming sword strike with his staff, the third hokage landed a bone jarring punch to his former students face, sending him, flying. Not letting the opportunity pass, he slammed his staff through the snake sannin's head, causing him to dissolve into mud. From the left, he heard a loud boom and glanced up to see orochimaru standing on top of Manda's head.

" Why have you summoned me.." began the giant snake before he dodged, several blades of wind. Sarutobi ran up the giant snake, dropping explosive tags as he went. He when he reached the head he swung at orochimaru dissolved into mud. Forming the tiger seal, he let loose a modified fire dragon, lighting the snake on fire and igniting the explosive tags, which tore Manda apart . pausing to catch his breath , he quickly dodged to the side, but too late, and kusanagi grazed his side. Grabbing orochimaru's extended arm, he twisted it and with a motion of his right hand slammed the staff into his stomach. Orochimaru lay gasping on the ground. " Curse you, you miserable old man." Sarutobi said nothing but picked up the fallen kusangi and with one smooth motion, sliced off his head. " goodbye, disciple." Falling to one knee he coughed up blood, the poison from the kusanagi making its way through his body.

Enma, caught him before he fell completely. "rest now, my old friend. " he said, laying the old man on the ground. Sarutobi smiled , but said nothing , his eyes seeing not the surrounding forest, but his beloved Village. "_When the tree leaves dance, one shall find flames. The fire's shadow will illuminate the village, and one day, once again, tree leaves shall bud anew._" He said softly.

Miles away, a shadowy figure watched, his one eye, was red and spinning." A fitting end, for one who had mastered the way of shinobi."

Whew here we are , an interlude chapter. I was watching the anime a few weeks ago and I thought it sucked how such a great ninja died. So I decided to give him a fitting end. , next chapter is ' The path to power'


	5. I'm Back

Hey everybody. Its been a long time since we have last spoken, a long year of personal problems, life, and the publishing of a book has delayed my updates… but now I'm tanned, I'm rested, and ready to give the world of fanfiction a wedgie again. So all my stories are now considered active and will undergo a massive reediting. , let the fun begin


	6. The path to power

An amused Hanzo, gazed down at his bedraggled students. " So you have awakened your ..gifts, have you? "Naruto nodded, trying to restrain from moving his sore body. "here's the necklace sensei" he said , handing the golden ornament to his master. Hanzo rolled the piece of jewelry around his fingers"the man you fought, was called Kenchi, he was a A-ranked missing nin from Iwa."

the children looked in shock as the man crushed the solid gold with his bare hands. motioning the children he turned and walked towards the great courtyard ."from now on you will each learn to control your newfound powers. For Kimmimaro,Yakumo, and Haku, this is easy, simply meditate and experiment. For you, Naruto and Yugito, It will require communication with the Biju that you hold." He paused" but like always my young pupils , remember not to grow reliant on your bloodline or Biju."

With an evil grin he settled into a fighting stance, "now lets go to work."

-Taijutsu_

From this point on Hanzo redoubled their training. The effects of their near defeat at the hands of Kenchi, had spurred the children's drive. They each vowed never to put their family at risk again. their taijustu training became riddled with intense daily spars with each other as well as five on one weekly spars with him. They undertook intense drills, designed to increase the speed, accuracy and power of both their attacks and defense. Each had begun to form their own styles of attacking during their frequent spars.

Naruto, the smallest of the children, favored speed and lightning fast attacks that penetrated a foes defense to devastating effect.

In part to counter his rivals style, Kimmimaro favored strong bone breaking attacks as well as impenetrable defense. With his increasing control over his bloodline he was able to harden his bones , both for sturdier defense and increased power for attacks. Drawing on his Kaguya training and experimentation he began creating several dances to enhance his bloodlines effectiveness., allowing him to quickly outshine the others in taijutsu alone.

Haku took Koshijutsu to its core, and began studying pressure, nerve and chakra points. She combed through all of hanzo's tomes on medical jutsu and poisons, and combined both with her hyouton bloodline to make a deadly fighting style. With the flick of a chakra scalpel or an ice senbon ,s he could remove a foes ability to use an appendage such as an arm or leg. She coated her nails and senbon with several types of poison, making even the lightest touch potentially deadly. her speed became second only to narutos,

Yugito, favored a style that allowed her to react to enemies attacks, she trained hard to increase her reaction time, and was able to dodge and instantly counterattack from strike aimed at her person.

Yakumo created a truly frightening style. Being the weakest physically and having immense genjutsu ability, she focused mainly on dodging and adapting to attacks, her strikes were quick and the lightest touch could send an unprepared enemy into a frightful genjutsu., leaving even Naruto reluctant to actually hit her. Hanzo proved immune to the effects of her attacks, and he warned her that ninja at his level, would disregard the images she sent coursing through their minds. Her techniques were great training for the others during spars, as it taught them to quickly shrug of high level genjutsu.

-strength and speed-

Their strength and speed training intensified. They were forced to tie heavy boulders around their backs during the laps up and down the stairs. During their swim, increasingly heavier rocks and finally weighted bands, made the increasingly long treks more difficult.

Naruto, who focused mostly on speed, wore double the amount of weighted clothing as the rest of them. Hanzo began incorporating several new drills

Including dodging drills, which consisted of shadow clones of hanzo launching torrents of senbon at them., balance drills in which they maintained their balance on top of a log for hours at a time, training their awareness as one of hanzo's hidden clones would launch a kunai at them,, forcing them to dodge while maintaining their perfect balance on the log. After the first six months the others joined hanzo in the kunai throwing, increasing each of their accuracy against moving targets.

-Chakra Control-

Leading the children to a stream, he began showing them the fundamentals of water walking. Any access chakra usage was met with swift retribution in the form of being cut by the meaning kunai Hanzo sent at them as well as a dunk in the stream.

Eventually they were able to spar all out on top of the water. This lead way to intense kunai balancing, forcing them to expel chakra from their finger to balance on top of a spike. They were forced to hold it for hours, increasing both their control and reserves, with increased chakra control they were able to increase their strength and speed with chakra exponentially .

Every night the children practiced manifesting and training their special abilities.. naruto was able to control up to one tail of the kyubbi's chakra, however his attempts to contact the beast again were met with failure. Kimmimaro was able to fully control his bones, and began incorporating it into his taijutsu style. Yugito had made fast friends with her **B**iju, the Nibi, becoming something of a mentor to her. She learned to utilize the blue flame at will as will as some of the Nibi's chakra. . haku began experimenting and creating techniques with her ice manipulation, and Yakumo began reading advanced genjutsu scrolls.

By the time Naruto turned seven and their three year anniversary of their training with Hanzo. They had begun learning silent killing , which involved them being to forced to train with the loss of one of their senses then find each other in the hidden mist jutsu,

They practiced both teamwork and tracking, by hunting down hanzo's clones and assassinating them,. Their non physical lessons grew to include espionage, disguise, geography. They were forced to know the layout and politics off every nation in the elemental countries. They learned spying and espionage techniques, eventually sneaking into nearby towns and assuming the identity of some unsuspecting person, as well as practicing becoming invisible.

They began studying seals, how to apply and counter them. Naruto, took to them like a fish to water, and he quickly moved beyond the others in their usage. However they could all create and unseal storage scrolls, and exploding tags as well as how to make tracking seals.

By naruto's eighth birthday, hanzo finally began teaching them both genjutsu and ninjutsu as well as opening his vast library of scrolls so they could create their own arsenal . he began instructing them on kenjutsu, and each picked their own style of weapon.

Naruto began practicing with a weighted sword, to increase his speed and strength, he favored a murmasa, which was perfect for his high speed style.

Kimmimaro used his spine as a giant sword, he could frequently be found clashing blades with Naruto. Yakumo, oddly enough favored a double bladed scyth. Yugito decided to use a basic ninjato . Haku decided to train with twin daggers , as well as a senbon launcher.

When naruto turned 8, hanzo began sending them on missions. Some were assassination, some were infiltration and information gathering. There was only one rule . never be seen. Anyone who laid eyes on them must be destroyed.

-2 years later-

A ten year old naruto ducked the tiny bone missile sent by his partner. Channeling chakra into his feet he disappeared in a burst of speed, and launched a bone crushing punch towards the bone user's face, Kimmimaro, knowing it was pointless to dodge, took the punch without moving an inch and retaliated with a kick that Naruto dodged hastily, landing on the opposite side of the rapidly running water which was their battlefield.

"You've gotten faster" said the silver haired boy. Naruto rubbed his fist. "I think your head has gotten harder." They both grinned then turned towards the sound of the female laughter. That came from behind them." Time for elemental training boys" said an amused Yakumo. The two boys shivered. Of the five of them Yakumo was the best at stealth. They hadn't even heard her arrive. Knowing better than to keep their master waiting, the trio vanished.

"It sure took you long enough": remarked a raven haired girl when the trio arrived at their seats. : I almost came looking for you." "no worries, haku-chan" said naruto, I wouldn't miss out on this for the world." Haku smiled at the energetic boy, before glancing at Yugito, they had come far.

***flashback one year.***

Naruto wandered his mindscape which he had been attempting to do for years. Making his way down the long corridors he, stopped in front of a huge gate with the word seal on it. 'Remarkable' he thought,' the fourth hokage was truly a genius to create such a seal'

" **So you are finally here human**." Said a booming voice.. Naruto 's eyes searched the interior of the gate until they fell upon a giant fox, laying with its head in its paws. "Kyuubi"he whispered softly.

" **Your powers of observation are astounding"** said the fox sarcastically**." You are a credit to your species".** Naruto bit back a smart remark. Now was not the time to antagonize a millennia year old fox.. the fox looked amused before sniffing him. **"Ahhh.** He said after a minute. ".**Perhaps you are the one after all., I smell her on you**" "who?" asked the boy but the fox seemed not to hear him." **That is** **why I have allowed you the use of my chakra, and you have done well you are strong for a human. However you still have much further to grow, when you are ready, come see me..** " before Naruto could ask any questions to relieve the confusion he felt. A large scroll appeared in his hands. " **when your master deems them ready give them to your companions. They must seek them out**," before he could protest the boy was ejected from his mindscape.

"**why help him?."** Said a strong male voice. The fox laughed." **You've heard the phrase, about nothing being able to withstand a demons fury." **The man nodded warily**" well those who get in the way of fate and destiny are similarly swept aside." **

After being ejected from his mindspace, naruto found himself, laying on the floor a giant silver scroll on his chest. Taking the scroll to Hanzo, he was shocked to see his master read it then stutter in surprise.

"Do you know what this is, Naruto?" asked the former amekage. Seeing the boy shake his head he continued." This scroll contains the location of the celestial summons. . the four guardians. Suzaku, the great phoenix and lord of lightning. Genbu the tortoise, and master of earth, Byakko the white Tiger and controller of fire, and Seiaryu the blue dragon and master of water and ice.

Naruto looked shocked. " He said that when you felt they were ready, that the others should seek them out." Hanzo grinned. "Time to up your training again".

the training that followed over the next year was brutal. He learned their elemental affinities. Wind for Naruto, Fire for Yugito, Water for Haku, Earth for kimmimaro, and lastly Lightning for Yakumo. . their sparring intensified. They had thought they had felt the extent of their masters immense power. They were wrong. It took them weeks to overcome the full force of his killing intent. Their group spars with him ended in broken bones, and had it not been for haku's immense medical skills one of them would have likely been crippled.. chakra control was perfected by meditating under a waterfall. taijustu forms and handseals became perfect.. 'Soon thought Hanzo, 'they will be ready"

**-end flashback.-**

"You have all learned much over your six years as my students." Came a voice from behind them.. the children turned and bowed. "you have each reached the level of elite Jonin. and proven your worth to me in battle again and again."

He unfurled the scroll

" I believe you are ready to undertake any tests that the great beasts can give you." Haku, you are to head to the north to find the Seiaryu the blue dragon, Kimmimaro, head south to find Genbu the tortoise, Yugito you will take Byakko to the east, while Yakumo will take Suzaku to the west." The four nodded. " as for you Naruto.." before he could speak , Kyuubi spoke in Naruto's mind. **'You are to head to the land of iron, there a trial awaits that will decide your destiny.'" **

Kyuubi said that I should head for the land of iron." Naruto said softly. Hanzo looked puzzled for a minute .before nodding. " I do not know how long these trials will take or what will happen while you are gone.., however, you are to continue to train your hardest, we will rendezvous here in four years.". the five children nodded before vanishing.

Hanzo coughed into his sleeve, ignoring the spots of blood that it left. 'its time to see how the world has changed" he whispered to himself before vanishing.

AN. whew finally another chapter. hope you guys enjoy it. I edited the rest of all my stories so go back and read them. serious lack of action this chapter, but they are fired up for the carnage that begins in the next one. can't wait.

btw, who thinks kishimoto doesn't know what the hell he's doing. he makes the villans so powerful that there is no way realistically that anyone can beat them. i mean madara was strong enough without the rinnegan and why the hell is kabuto the lord of death. . ah well til next time. ciao


	7. The goddess of death

-On the outskirts of Lightning Country-

Yakumo, crept silently up a small cliff on the outskirts of a giant forest. Awestruck. She surveyed thee impressive view of the sun hitting the impossibly huge mountains. The trees that bordered The giant hills , seemed like tiny ants Compared the behemoths of stoned that towered over them.

'If only Haku was here' she thought taking in the sight. The raven haired girl loved scenes like these, and on her rare breaks from training, could be found sitting by the stream, watching the reflections of the nearby mountain on the water..

Yakumo sighed. It had been over a month since she had seen the soft spoken girl. She missed her already. Reaching into her back pouch she pulled out a small scroll. On it contained directions to the mountain where the lord of lightning dwelled. 'Unfortunately, the stupid map is outdated by about five hundred years, Trying to find a particular mountain in this place is like finding a needle in a needlestack' repressing a groan she steeled herself. 'I need information. The closest village is Kumo, but I don't want to take on the cloud villages security if I can help it and they are sure to be suspicious of anyone traveling alone in these turbulent times' she spent the next few minutes pondering a strategy , when In the corner of her eye she spotted four figures moving quickly through the forest below. Three were obviously children, for not one of them was taller than her, the last was a middle aged woman.

'A genin team?' Yakumo thought . 'Perfect'.

Using body flicker the brown haired girl disappeared, she reappeared in the forest below, and being careful to completely hide her presence , she began to stalk the unsuspecting jonin. As she got closer, she began weaving a genjutsu around the oblivious genin. The three children, two boys and one girl suddenly pulled out kunai and launched themselves at their surprised sensei , one of the boys managed to sink a kunai into the jonin's shoulder before her instincts kicked in and before any of the befuddled genin could blink, had slammed her fist into his throat, before twisting and breaking the arm of the only girl. The last boy continued his attack only to receive a foot to the face as his sensei kicked him into a tree. The woman's surprise was short lived as a kunai entered her lung from behind, preventing a scream..

Yakumo removed the concealment justu, she had placed around herself and walked over to the fallen woman and slit her throat. Turning to the woman's now unconscious students. She leaned down and touched the female genin placing into her unconscious mind, an image of her being brutally cut by Kunai. The particulars of her bloodline caused real cuts to appear on her body. For the two boys she placed an image of being attacked by two Iwa-missing nin before placing a double layer genjutsu around herself, disguising her as the Kumo Jonin. Waking up her new students, she picked up the girl and the quartet made their way to Kumo.

-Kumo s Gate-

The two guards on gate duty when Yakumo arrived were half asleep, and thus didn think anything of it, when a worried jonin hurried her wounded students towards the nearby hospital,As soon as the guards were out of sight, Yakumo headed towards the clearly labeled hospitail, and after using her genjutsu to knock the addled genin unconscious , was able to leave them there for examination..

It was time for her search to begin.

Three hours later she was ready to scream in frustration. She had looked everywhere, the academy, various clan homes, even the meager shinobi library, nothing. 'Theres only one place left to search' she thought, cursing her luck. 'the lightning tower where the Raikage once ruled'

Every since Kumo's defeat by the Alliance, they had been run by two governors that were also members of the elite governing body of the elemental countries, The Akatsuki. Twice a year, the governors of every major village would meet and discuss running the empire.  
'unfortunately' , she thought, 'I have no Idea who they are or what powers they may have, and its only a matter of time before my ruse is discovered.'she thought for a moment ' No choice then .' making sure her genjutsu was still in place she made her way towards the Lightning tower.

Yakumo, held her breath, and after finding an area with no obvious chakra sources, she quickly surpressed her own, and leapt through an open window. Twisting her body midflight, she landed in a crouch, two Kunai in each palm. finding no enemies, she began to make her way through the maze that was Lightning tower.

"lets see.'she thought ' A scroll like the one I'm loking for would probably be held with other secret forbidden scrolls in the raikage's office, which should be at the top of the tower.' Masking a satisfied grin she began making her way up the tower, being careful to mask her prescence from the scattered Kumo Nin who were on buisness there. fortunately for her, most jonin trained to instantly pick up the most minor flare of chakra. because she was using none, and kept out of sight, she was all but invisible to the unsuspecting ninja.

'Thanks sensei' she whispered in her mind, when she reached the hallway where the raikages office was. There were two guards, whose chakra levels and unguarded posture led her to believe they were chunnin. she silently drew two throwing knives and buried them in each of the unfortunate guards throats. landing from the ceiling without a sound, she made her way through the door.

Her eyes surveyed the room in an instant. and spotting a large shelf that contained several dusty scrolls on the far end of the room , she walked over there quickly, and deactivating the security seals surrounding the shelf, she rummaged through them. she almost cryed in frustration, when her efforts appeared fruitless. The unhappy brunette was about to give up and search another area, when she spotted a hidden catch located on the back of the shelf. She pulled it to the side and sighed with relief when she found a safe.

Since the safe looked to complicated to pick the lock, she channeled lightning chakra into her fist and punched it with all her might, wincing at the electrical backlash up her arm and the loud noise it made. In the safe was a large silver scroll, with an image of a large phoenix on it. before she could grab it ,a loud alarm sounded.

Cursing her luck the genjutsu mistress quickly tucked the scroll in her silver vest, and shunshined out the open window.

- On the outskirts of Kumo-

-"Fuck. " Yakumo cursed, as she dodged another hail of shuriken.'there must be dozens of them' she had managed to make it halfway out the village, before teams of Kumo Anbu were on her tail. increasing her speed, she sighed in relief when she spotted the group of trees leading towards the mountains.

Her danger senses tingled, and she grabbed a thrown Kunai out of the air, and propelled it into the original throwers throat.

"You've gone far enough now little girl" said a deep voice. she turned to see a tall figure, with dark brown hair, standing with a small group of eight anbu.

"Time to explain what you wanted, with that useless scroll anyway."He smiled when Yakumo entered a battle stanc." You are brave girl, to face several anbu teams as well as Me, Tomiko,Takeshi, one of Kumo's strongest jonin.".

Yakumo cursed. She had heard of was Listed as an A-class missing Nin in Iwa's Bingo Book, before the alliance had been specialized in Lightning jutsu and Taijutsu.

'And Judging from the footsteps behind me,my pursuers have caught up.' sShe grinned at Takeshi before miming seals. By the time she formed the second seal a barrage of Kunai buried themselves into her body. causing it to disappear in a poof smoke.

'Subsitution" thought the collecive Kumo ninja, before an angelic voice echoed through the woods. "Bringer of Darkness Technique" said a triumphant Yakumo. Screams began to echo around the mountain as the Kumo nin found themeselves in infinite darkness and futilely began yelling 'Kai'.

Yakumo Pulled out a scroll and unsealed a huge black scythe. " No matter how strong you are takeshi, there is no escape for one such as you from this technique" twirling her scythe and using genjutsu to render her steps silent. she cut a bloody path through the confused anbu., the silver part of her blade began to drip with blood by the time the last anbu was beheaded.

A Desperate, Takeshi formed a small lightning ball, and electrocuted himself, shaking himself out of the illusion. however, the aftershocks of the electricity dulled his reflexes temporarily and he was unable to dodge the kunai that buried itself into his back. To His eyes cloudy with death, the girl standing before him looked more like the reaper himself, than the pretty young girl he had first encountered.

Glancing around one last time, he was unable to restrain a gasp at the the scene before him. the bodies of several teams of anbu littered the field. he turned toward the sound of foot steps and saw Yakumo standing over him , an impassive look in her eyes.

"Forgive me" she said, "but those who have laid eyes on me shall not live to tell about it" with one fell stroke her scythe cut off his head.

With nary a glance at the carnage surrounding her, she body flickered away, unaware that hours later the ninja sent to investigate the dissapperance of their missing comrades, would look on in horror at the battlefield , and label her . The Goddess of Death.


	8. Chapter 8

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